Blade Runner is a 1982 dystopian scifi film drama directed by Ridley Scott and starring Harrison Ford as the titular character. The film was loosely based on Philip K Dick’s novel, Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? Despite the initial commercial and critical failure of Blade Runner (when it was first released in 1982), the film has attained cult status in the years since and has been retroactively hailed as one of the best science-fiction films of all time.
Predator is a 1987 scifi action thriller drama film directed by John McTiernan and starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. The film spawned a direct sequel – Predator 2 (1990) – a couple of spin-offs with Alien vs Predator (2004), Alien vs Predator (2007) and Predators (2010) – as well as a reboot with The Predator (2018).
The Thing is a 1982 scifi horror drama thriller film directed by John Carpenter. Based on John W. Campbell Jr.’s Who Goes There? The Thing was ostensibly also a remake of Howard Hawk’s The Thing From Another World (1951) which was also an adaptation of Campbell’s 1938 novella.
Raiders of the Lost Ark is a 1981 action-adventure drama film directed by Steven Spielberg and written by Lawrence Kasdan, based on a story by George Lucas and Philip Kaufman. Raiders of the Lost Ark starred Harrison Ford as archaeologist-adventurer Indiana Jones and launched a franchise, with three subsequent films.
Infinite is a scifi action thriller drama directed by Antonio Fuqua. The movie is based on D. Eric Maikranz’s 2009 novel The Reincarnationist Papers and stars Mark Wahlberg and Chiwetel Ejiofor. The premise of Infinite revolves around the concept of reincarnated beings who retain the memories of past lives.
The Dirty Dozen is a 1967 war action drama film directed by Robert Aldrich and based on the novel written by E.M. Nathanson. The story is a work of fiction, set during World War II and centred around twelve court-martialled soldiers who are promised a reprieve from their capital sentences if they are successful in completing a virtual suicide mission behind enemy lines, just before D-Day.
Army of the Dead is a 2021 American horror action drama film directed by Zack Snyder, with a screenplay he co-wrote with Shay Hatten and Joby Harold, based on a story by Snyder. The film had been in development hell at Warner Bros since 2007 before being picked up by Netflix in 2019. Army of the Dead marks Zack Snyder’s first new film since Justice League and the release was accompanied has been accompanied with the attendant hype from the buzz over The Snyder Cut and so on.
Nobody is a 2021 American action-thriller drama film directed by Ilya Naishuller and written by Derek Kolstad. The film’s premise involves a bystander who intervenes to help a woman being harassed by a group of men who then becomes the target of a vengeful drug lord. Cue an ultra-violent revenge flick that is reminiscent of the John Wick franchise.
John Wick is a 2014 American neo-noir action-thriller drama film directed by Chad Stahelski, in his directorial debut, and written by Derek Kolstad. The movie was a commercial success, spawning two sequels and perhaps inspiring a new ultraviolet action sub-genre. Certainly, John Wick revitalised the career of Keanu Reeves to such an extent that Matrix 4 was surely made on the back of his renewed popularity.
Sound of Metal is a 2019 American drama film directed and co-written by Darius Marder. The film was critically acclaimed and has been nominated for six Academy Awards, including Best Picture. The film revolves around a drummer (Riz Ahmed) who loses his hearing and follows his efforts to adapt and adjust his life to his new reality.
The Wanderers is a 1979, American comedy-drama film co-written and directed by Philip Kaufman and is based on the novel of the same name by Richard Price. Set in the Bronx in 1963, the film follows a gang of Italian-American teenagers known as the Wanderers and their ongoing power struggles with rival gangs such as the Baldies and the Wongs. The movie stars Ken Wahl, John Friedrich, Karen Allen and Toni Kalem.
WeWork: Or The Making and Breaking of a $47 Billion Unicorn is a 2021 American documentary film, written and directed by Jed Rothstein. It follows WeWork, a real estate company run by Adam Neumann, who was ultimately forced out of the company.
The superhero movie genre is now the dominant genre in the entertainment industry. From a 1% market share in 1998, the superhero movie genre grew to a 20% market share in 2018. Marvel Studios – now owned by Disney – is the undisputed leader in the genre earning over $22 billion at the global box office in about 12 years, since the release of Iron Man in 2008.
The Father is a psychological family drama film co-written and directed by Florian Zeller, based on his 2012 play Le Père. A French-British co-production, the film stars Anthony Hopkins, Olivia Colman, Mark Gatiss, Imogen Poots, Rufus Sewell, and Olivia Williams, and follows an aging man who must deal with his progressing memory loss.
Supernova is a 2020 British drama film written and directed by Harry Macqueen. The film stars Colin Firth and Stanley Tucci. The premise of Supernova is fairly depressing as Firth and Tucci play a gay couple, Sam and Tusker, respectively. Tusker was diagnosed with dementia two years before and the couple take a road trip in their old RV before Tusker loses his memories and sense of self.
Harriet is a 2019 American biographical cum historical film drama directed by Kasi Lemmons, who also wrote the screenplay with Gregory Allen Howard. It stars Cynthia Erivo as abolitionist Harriet Tubman, with Leslie Odom Jr., Joe Alwyn, and Janelle Monáe in supporting roles.
One Night in Miami is a 2020 American historical drama film directed by Regina King in her feature film directorial debut with a screenplay by Kemp Powers based on his stage play of the same name. The film is about a meeting of Malcolm X, Muhammad Ali, Jim Brown, and Sam Cooke in a room at the Hampton House in February 1964, celebrating Ali’s surprise title win over Sonny Liston. It stars Kingsley Ben-Adir, Eli Goree, Aldis Hodge, and Leslie Odom Jr. in the lead roles.
The Reader is a 2008 historical drama film directed by Stephen Daldry and written by David Hare, based on the 1995 German novel of the same name by Bernhard Schlink. The movie starred Kate Winslet and Ralph Fiennes and was nominated for several other major awards, including the Academy Award for Best Picture. However, the story does not really stand up to scrutiny as we will endeavour to explain in our following analysis.
Operation Varsity Blues is an American dramatised documentary film streaming on Netflix. The film is based on the 2019 scandal related to a criminal conspiracy to influence undergraduate admissions decisions at several top American universities. The investigation into the conspiracy was code named Operation Varsity Blues.
Zack Snyder’s Justice League is the literal revenge of the nerds. Fandom’s fanatical insistence that Warner Bros release the Snyder Cut over the years led to this unlikely movie becoming a reality in the surreal circumstances of 2021. Sure, it’s a gimmick to sell HBO Max and might not have happened otherwise. Who cares?
With the Disney+ streaming platform being available worldwide since February this year, the Marvel Cinematic Universe (“MCU”) movies can be found in one convenient place. Power of Pop has been a staunch supporter of the MCU since the release of Iron Man and The Incredible Hulk (which is not available on Disney+) in 2008. Thus, we continue our look back at the MCU with probably its most significant movie, 2012’s The Avengers.
The Mauritanian is a 2021 legal drama film directed by Kevin Macdonald based on the 2015 memoir Guantánamo Diary by Mohamedou Ould Salahi, a true story of Salahi’s experience of being held for fourteen years without charge in the Guantanamo Bay detention camp. The film stars Jodie Foster, Tahar Rahim, Shailene Woodley, and Benedict Cumberbatch.
With the Disney+ streaming platform being available worldwide since February this year, the Marvel Cinematic Universe (“MCU”) movies can be found in one convenient place. Power of Pop has been a staunch supporter of the MCU since the release of Iron Man and The Incredible Hulk (which is NOT available on Disney+ due to distribution issues) in 2008. Thus, we continue our look back at the MCU with Iron Man 2, which was released in 2010.
A Sun is a 2019 award-winning Taiwanese drama film that is now streaming on Netflix. Directed and co-written by Chung Mong-hong, A Sun received 11 nominations at the 56th Golden Horse Awards, winning Best Feature Film and Best Director for Chung. The film was also selected as Taiwan’s entry for the Best International Feature Film at the 93rd Academy Awards, making the shortlist of fifteen films.
Judas and the Black Messiah is a 2021 historical drama film about the betrayal of Fred Hampton (Daniel Kaluuya), chairman of the Illinois chapter of the Black Panther Party in late-1960s Chicago, at the hands of William O’Neal (Lakeith Stanfield), a FBI informant.
